NYT Connections answers for February 5, 2026 (Puzzle #970) spread fast—here’s what’s confirmed
Puzzle #970 of the daily word game “Connections” triggered a familiar cycle on Thursday, February 5, 2026 (ET): early “hints” raced across social feeds, full groupings appeared within minutes, and plenty of players landed on near-misses that felt right but weren’t. If you’re trying to solve without getting sandbagged by bad groupings or accidental reveals, the key is knowing what counts as a verified hint, what’s just crowd momentum, and how to control how much you see.
Puzzle #970 at a glance
Today’s grid leaned on cultural knowledge and a couple of “looks-like-a-pair” traps. The cleanest entry points were words that felt unmistakably American and a set of collision verbs, but the puzzle’s sting came from two groups that required either color association knowledge or a recognition pattern tied to a shared surname.
Verified hints vs rumor answers
“Verified” help is usually limited, light-touch guidance that doesn’t hand you four-word sets. It tends to nudge toward a theme, warn about a trap, or clarify the rules—without revealing the full structure.
Rumor answers, by contrast, often show up as:
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complete four-word groups posted without explanation,
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category titles that instantly collapse the puzzle,
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or partial groupings that are “close enough” to mislead (the worst kind of help).
For #970, the most common rumor-style mistake was overcommitting to wordplay too early—seeing one clever connection and forcing the grid to match it—rather than testing whether the remaining words can still form three clean sets.
Full answers for February 5, 2026 (Puzzle #970)
If you want the confirmed solution, here are the four categories and their members:
| Difficulty color | Category | Words |
|---|---|---|
| Yellow | Cultural symbols of the U.S. | AMERICAN FLAG, APPLE PIE, BALD EAGLE, BASEBALL |
| Green | Collide with | BUMP, BUTT, KNOCK, RAM |
| Blue | Blue things | JEANS, LAPIS LAZULI, OCEAN, SKY |
| Purple | Lees of Hollywood | ANG, BRUCE, CHRISTOPHER, SPIKE |
Why this one tripped people up
Two features made #970 feel more slippery than it looks.
First, “LAPIS LAZULI” is a standout word, but it can pull you into the wrong kind of certainty. Some players recognize it immediately as a blue mineral/pigment; others hesitate because it feels like it should belong to a “stone,” “gem,” or “ancient” category instead. Once you commit to the wrong bucket, it becomes harder to see the clean color set.
Second, the “Lees” group is a classic Connections move: four items that are simple once you see the shared surname, but hard if you’re approaching from meaning instead of identity. “ANG” can read like a sound effect, “SPIKE” like an object, and “BRUCE/CHRISTOPHER” like first-name trivia—until the pattern snaps into place.
How to keep spoilers under control
The easiest way to avoid ruining the puzzle is to decide in advance how much help you want. If you only want nudges, avoid anything that lists four words together or names category titles. If you’re already stuck and want a push without a reveal, look for single-word guidance—one tricky term explained in plain language—then return to the grid and test combinations yourself.
A practical habit that helps: start the puzzle first and make at least one guess before looking anything up. That way, even if you accidentally see a partial reveal, you’ve already had a fair shot at solving the grid on your own terms.
Sources consulted: The New York Times, Forbes, TechRadar, Parade
